Tuesday, December 22, 2009

I got the idea for making these from a guy named Rod Brooks, who hosts a sports talk show on KNBR, here in San Francisco.

Ironically, I was on my way to the gym when I heard him talking about a party he recently hosted, and for an appetizer he had simply set out bowls of cooked bacon. Genius.

I decided to take that idea and make it a little more holiday-ish by candying the strips of fatty pork. Let's face it, the holidays are all about taking our favorite things: sports, drinking, toys, food, etc., and enjoying them in seasonally acceptable levels of excess.As I mention in the video, candied bacon is much more than a neat party favor. It makes the best BLT ever, and would make any plate of eggs so much more memorable.

One tip I forgot to mention in the clip – line your pan with foil! The caramelized bacon drippings are a little tough to wash off! Enjoy.

A crazy-ass delicious bacon recipe? Is this some sort of cheap way of you trying to make the Yahoo News home page again?!? Bacon? Yeesh. Low blow.Why don't you do it the honest way like every one else, Chef John, and accidentally taser yourself at a pep rally or teach your cat to flush the toilet or something. Yeesh.

"On the way to the gym"? WTF FTW! I feel like I don't know you anymore...

Incidentally, to Jared Retter who posted a question earlier: Go with the "bone in usda", as it's one of my favorite Springsteen tunes.

I can eat Candied bacon allll day long! I've put it in chocolate chip cookies and they are delicious! It's a good thing my mom made all the bacon for our breakfast b/c otherwise, I'd be up there and making some right now, which is not a good idea after all the food we ate yesterday!

Brunch for 6 on Christmas Day. Served Candied Bacon to munch on while opening gifts - they loved it. Ran out of glaze about half way through so made another batch. I used Kroger brand thick cut (on sale, buy one get one free) and trimmed the ends to fit the pan. Then your Eggs Benedict - fantastic. Made the eggs in advance per your instructions and stored overnight in the frig. Practiced the hollandaise the day before then made up a 1 ½ X the recipe just before plating up - perfect. Food Wishes rocks! Thank you Chef John.Ed P - Bellevue, WA

Brought these bad boys to a Christmas fondue dinner, and then all ravaging hell broke loose because they were so darn good! I think one or two may have ended up being dipped in melted cheese and chocolate. O the humanity! They are simply killer and make one the star of the night! Thanks for sharing.Ryan N. - Missoula, Montana

I made these and they were insanely delicious. I also ran out of glaze and had to whip up a quick second batch. My family went crazy for these and finished them all before I could set some aside for the following day. They are already asking when we'll have these again...

Made it today for a party tomorrow- used Coleman bacon from Costco (2.25 lbs)- nitrate- and hormone-free. So far it's amazing. I have had to make a little more syrup mixture than I calculated- maybe I'm just being to messy and it's running off the edges or putting too much on, but it's sooooo good. Hope it's as good tomorrow!

Just curious, what function does the vinegar serve? Just to cut the sweetness a little? I don't taste the vinegar, so something's working!

I made this recipe for my girlfriend's office party tomorrow. I added a wee bit of 5-spice powder and bourbon whiskey to the glaze, simply because I am a jerk, and I could.

Jennifer thought the glaze tasted like cough syrup. I tucked that one away for later: Nyquil glazed bacon? Might work... but after commingling with all that bubbling bacon fat, a marvelous, transcendental transformation took place.

It's a tragedy that pork is neither kosher nor halal, because in my heart of hearts I believe this amuse bouche would bring peace to the Middle East.

I made candied bacon for Christmas eve. It is officially a new family tradition. There's no nutritional rationale for eating candied bacon - it is pure delight and comfort. The 4 people (including me) knew they shouldn't eat it but we couldn't stop, and we ate a full pound of bacon in mere minutes. I think it's just the thing for a holiday tradition - for health reasons I'll limit it to once a year!

After 35 minutes of basting every 5 minutes at 350F my bacon wasn't browning. My oven thermometer said the temp dropped to near 300, I'm assuming from opening the door so often. I cranked the temp up to 375F, as I've seen other recipes recommend 400F for bacon, and I also left the bacon in for 7 minutes per side and it came out perfect.

Can you use veggie bacon to make these? I am going to make these for the rest of my family, however due to health problems, I have been a vegetarian for 15 years now, but dang this just looks so delicious!

Made three pounds of this today for a party. Lots of smiles. Truly a labor of love ... Love of bacon, and love of family and friends. It takes time and is a little messy to clean up, but worth the effort. Fun idea!

A labor of love. Love of bacon, love of family and friends. I made three pounds today for a party and it took quite a bit of time to make and clean up, but worth the effort. Fun idea! I also put in a bit a cayenne, but it would need more for the kick I was looking for.